Blog Exercises: August Current Events

Been watching the news lately? It’s time to blog the news and current events for August in our Blog Exercises.

For some communities, August is the start of the harvest season, a busy month. For other communities, it is the quietest month. Some societies practically close down their towns to vacate for cooler locations, getting out of the boiling heat of the city.

For parents and families, this is the last chance to get out and away on vacation, getting everything done before the school season begins.

All of this activity does not mean the news stops. Nor should you.

As part of our monthly current events Blog Exercise, consider looking for news associated with summer and your community. This is also a time of fairs, festivals, and community events. Is there anything in the local news that will connect with your audience?

Sometimes it is the festival that is worth reporting upon. Sometimes it is the silliness behind the festivals and regional events that is newsworthy.

My community of North Plains, Oregon, has an annual festival event called “The Elephant Garlic Festival.” With the theme motto “Fun Stinks,” this is a fantastic community event featuring local bands, a garlic food competition, huge library book sale, tons of activities for kids, and a huge arts and crafts fair featuring local artists. We haven’t missed a year since we moved here, but this year, everyone is missing the fun.

It seems that politics and bureaucracy got in the way of two groups wishing to control the garlic festival in the area. The “Elephant Garlic Festival” lost this year and the Garlic Out-West festival replaced it, at least as far as we know. Instead of “Fun Stinks” they are going with “It’s Chic to Reek.” That’s a lot of stink from both ends when the community suffers stinky fools.

Look around your community for this month’s current events blog post for something to blog about for August.

Remember to include a hat tip link back to this post to create a trackback, or leave a properly formed link in the comments so participants can check out your blog exercise task.

9 Comments

Hi there,
I live on a destination island where summers are jam packed with special event after event aimed at attracting tourists and spreading their money around the community. In fact many people choose to holiday year round here so every long weekend and statutory holiday features some local events.

For years I contributed to these events and even help make them happen but not now. I entered what Yoga practitioners refer to as the forest dweller stage in my life eight years ago. I also live on a forested acreage and little inclination or need to leave it frequently. Eight years ago I chose to become a hermit. That choice removed me from the personality politics stress that are inherent in all non-profit organizations. As years have gone by I’m no longer prevailed upon to help make these local money making events happen – alleluia! I have the option of avoiding them entirely or participating on the edges. I choose the former in almost every case.

It is so wonderful that you know yourself so well. Some people are hermits eager to crawl out of their cave, others rejoice in a hermit life. For those wishing to explore their world and become more connected to the social activities, exercises like this help them expand their horizons.

You, my friend, have figured out exactly what you want. I’ve seen you jump passionately on a current newsworthy event in our industry or of special interest to you and your readers, so I know you are not a complete hermit. You have a highly social and interactive life through the virtual world. I’m proud of you that you were able to create a private personal world for yourself as well.

You’re right. I’m not completely a hermit. In fact I do have a vibrant offline life but not in places where I’m immediately recognized. At this stage of my life I don’t choose to live my life by investing time and energy into making local events happen. My choice is not an uncommon one among those over 50 years of age, who can claim we’ve been there and done that and even designed the T-shirts. lol :D.

I am an INFJ but I rose above being an introvert living in a world dominated by extroverts and shocked the ___ out of everyone when I did. I’m a former political campaign worker/manager with a 16 year long track record of having every candidate that I campaigned for elected to office and they were all women.

Following many years of being a passionate and extremely outspoken political activist and environmentalist, who made every developer wanting to subdivide land squirm, while they upped their stress reduction meds, I’m a now a peaceful warrior. We, Canadian oldtimers variously referred to as “hippies” and “boomers” are all peaceful warriors now. We can enjoy our remaining years out of the spotlight, as we left a green legacy for the upcoming generations behind. We trained up a new generation of replacement firebrands for the environment, who are very well educated and who will not become enslaved to the almighty dollar.

Your touching life story reminds me of the hermit Tao Yuanming, one of the finest Chinese poets. Tao Chien (Tao Yuan-ming), Poet of Reclusion, has immortalised chrysanthemum in his famous poem with an image of him picking chrysanthemum in the eastern fence. He was in his own world without the noise of carts and horses: “When the heart is distant, solitude comes.”

You also reminds me of the image of a lotus, loved by a philosopher, Zhou Dunyi. He wrote a beautiful prose, Ode to Lotus (a pdf), in which he praised the purity of lotus: “I love only the lotus for rising from the mud but is not stained, bathed by clear waves but is not seductive.”

Hi Janet,
Thanks so much for your lovely response. I’ve been so busy with dental, optical and medical appointments that I haven’t had the time to return here until this morning. I have bookmarked both links you provided and do appreciate what you shared very much.

I hope you will indulge in the poems. They carry very strong images and I do like the horizon envisaged. If only I could live a completely transcendent life. I remember you used to have a lotus image on your other site and I loved it. Your new presentation is very refreshing.

I returned to apologize for rambling yesterday rather than responding to your main point let alone, adding anything of value to your post.

I think the inverted pyramid format is a great way to present your experience of a local event to your readers. The top is the base of the pyramid. It’s your introductory paragraph where you aim to engage readers so make it a strong and memorable lead. Next set the scene by highlighting the most important information re: the sights, sounds, smells and sensations. As you work downward answer who, what, why, where and when questions be sure to take temperature of the audience and report it. Provide more depth and flavor by adding details in brief verbal snapshots. Wrap up your article with the numbers and return to the main point ie. your reason for attending the event.

The inverted pyramid format is a long held tradition for publishing news, and one not used as often as it should be among bloggers, caught up as many are in the chronological narrative rather than moving faster to get to the point. You are so right! Thanks!